


The wedding dance - a love story in 3 parts

by Flowermountain (The_reading_owl)



Category: Star Trek: The Next Generation
Genre: Cute, Episode: s07e08 Attached, F/M, Feelings, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Wedding dance, but also like sadness in between, post attached
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-31
Updated: 2021-02-11
Packaged: 2021-03-17 08:53:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,096
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29097579
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_reading_owl/pseuds/Flowermountain
Summary: Weddings are usually a very romantic affair. Sometimes not just for the bride and groom. When two people on the Enterprise have an elaborate reception with a lot of dancing, one must wonder why Captain Jean-Luc Picard stands far away from all the fun, with the good Doctor Crusher also missing from the dance floor. Deanna Troi and Will Riker investigate.
Relationships: Beverly Crusher/Jean-Luc Picard, William Riker/Deanna Troi
Comments: 2
Kudos: 28





	1. Part one - Melancholy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After Deanna ditches him for yet unknown reasons, Will Riker goes on to investigate, why Captain Picard seems to be resistant to fun this evening.

A wedding on the Enterprise was always a special occasion. While the ceremony was a celebration of love between two people, the reception was a celebration of life and laughter, with music and dancing into the early hours of the morning.  
Today was such a special day. While the groom, a science officer, and his bride, a civilian teacher on the Enterprise, had been wed in a small ceremony with only their closest friends present, among them Deanna Troi, who had initially introduced them to each other, the wedding reception they held was open to the whole crew. There was a grande buffet and of course drinks in abundance in Ten Forward, which would later, after the feast, be converted into a dance hall, so that everyone had enough space to hit the dance floor.

"A beautiful reception, isn't it?", remarked an amused William Riker to the petite blackhaired woman, who'd been standing at the chocolate fountain ever since the buffet had been opened.

"The whole wedding was beautiful", the Counselor said between bites of chocolate.   
"I just love weddings! We should do them more often, especially more with a fountain of real chocolate." 

"They also have chocolate cake", Riker offered with a smile, pointing further down the dessert line. 

"I know, I've already put mine under the fountain to get the ultimate chocolate experience. It was heaven; but also _heavy_." 

Riker laughed. He'd expected nothing less from Deanna, who looked at chocolate in a way he sometimes wished she still looked at him. She was especially beautiful tonight, with her hair in a simple but elegant updo and a soft rosé colored dress, that enhanced her warm eyes and full lips. It took all Riker had not to kiss her there and then.

"Maybe later", he thought to himself and gave her one of his charming smiles.  
In one smooth motion, the tables and chairs were whisked away and the bride and groom went for their first dance to open the dance floor.  
Riker felt Deanna tense next to him and before he could ask her for a dance, she was already walking towards a group of woman chatting at the edge of the room, vanishing from his gaze.  
He wondered what that was about, but decided to ask her later on and just enjoy himself for now.  
By now the first people had joined the dance, mostly couples, but also, oddly enough, Data and Guinan. Riker surpressed a laugh, because even though the android and the mysterious bartender were by far the best dancers on the floor, they were also the most unlikely pair. Scanning the crowd, Riker was pleased to see a lot of happy faces, some familiar, some not, all enjoying themselves, dancing and drinking and laughing; until his eyes fell upon a familiar figure standing a little detached from the rest, drink in hand, but instead of a smile on his face, there was more of a wistful longing in his eyes.

"Captain", Riker greeted him, not too formally, as this was an informal evening, but still respectfully. "If you don't mind my asking, sir, but why are you standing here all alone? Why aren't you dancing?"

"I don't care much for dancing, Number One", Picard replied, without looking at him. His gaze remained fixed on the dancing crowd that had formed.  
Riker considered this. He found it hard to believe that their Captain, who seemed to enjoy all parts of the classical education, didn't like ballroom dancing. It seemed to him a contradiction in itself. However, Riker uttered none of this, but instead kept silent, reflecting on the strange mood the Captain seemed to be in. He worried and he wanted to help. Because the Captain was much more to Riker than just his superior officer; he was his friend.

"Whatever it is, you can tell me about it. I'm here for you." He quickly added a "Sir" to his sentence, as to not seem improper.

Picard seemed very touched by this. "Thank you, Will. I appreciate it. But you needn't worry about me. Just a feeling of melancholy" - the smile he gave Will was genuine - "it will pass. Now", he finished his drink, "how about you get us some more of Guinan's good whiskey?"

Will was happy to oblige. The Captain seemed better, a lot less lost in thought and almost ready to have a good time.  
The bar was crowded and Will had trouble getting the bartender's attention. Every time he opened his mouth to tell him his order, the man behind the counter seemed to turn to the next guest.

"Come on", he suddenly heard Deanna whisper next to him and felt her hand on his arm, guiding him to the dance floor, "dance with me, Will!"

He tried to protest and tell her, that he was getting drinks for him and the Captain, but her smile made any protest impossible. As they made their way to the dance floor, just as a very slow, romantic song began, he noticed that the Captain had gone." Where's the Captain?"

As an answer, Deanna smiled mysteriously, got up on her tiptoes and whispered in his ear: "I'll tell you everything, later. But for now", her lips touched his ear, sending shivers down his spine, "I want you...to dance with me."

She did tell him, though a lot later, after they had danced all night, after she'd woken up with his arms all around her, after a very different kind of dance. Oh, she really loved weddings!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This probably seems like a very "meh" chapter for all fellow p/c shippers, but I promise you, I will make it up to you! Chapter two coming soon, if you are interested and want more!


	2. Part 2 - Longing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just watched "Attached" for the first time a week ago, so I decided to set this a little while after the end of that episode.... Because I'm still so bitter the writers gave us a perfect love story and then butchered it...  
> Also please tell me what you think, all forms of criticism are welcome!

Deanna Troi stood at the dessert section of the wedding buffet, when she saw a grinning Will Riker strolling towards her. The happiness in the air was palpable not just for her, but visible on the faces of everyone around her. At an evening like this, you didn't have to be a betazoid to know what most people were feeling.

"A beautiful reception, isn't it?", Will asked her with an amused nod towards the chocolate fountain and various cakes.

"The whole wedding was beautiful", Deanna answered amusedly, putting another piece of chocolate inside her mouth. "I just _love_ weddings! We should do them more often, especially more with a fountain of real chocolate." But of course it wasn't just the prospect of real dessert that made her say this. For Deanna, a wedding usually meant a wave of radiating happiness sweeping over her. It was quite a pleasant sensation.

" They also have chocolate cake", Will steered the conversation back to the sweets and Deanna briefly wondered if that was really all he saw in her: a woman, who was crazy for chocolate. That thought amused her.

"I know, I've already put mine under the fountain to get the ultimate chocolate experience. It was heaven", she laughed, "but also _heavy_."  
Deanna could feel a shift in Will's emotion, from amusement to lust. She knew he was about to ask her to dance, when a sudden wave of sadness hit her like a punch in the gut. Every muscle in her body tensed. She knew that particular sadness. _Beverly_. Without a second thought, Deanna went to look for her friend, leaving a confused Will Riker behind. She could still dance with him later; right now, her friend needed her.

She found Beverly behind a group of chattering woman, standing alone with a glass of wine in her hand. While she didn't look especially sad on the outside, Deanna could feel the emotional turmoil on the inside. Something was troubling her deeply. 

"Beverly", she said, carefully putting a hand on the other woman's shoulder, "are you alright?" Although Deanna knew the answer, she wanted to give her the chance to answer herself.

"Deanna", Beverly said with a smile, her deep blue eyes full of sadness. Then, for a moment, she said nothing, taking a sip from her glass and trying to sort her thoughts. She knew that her friend already knew how she was feeling; now she had to find the words to articulate the reason for these feelings.

"It's just....", she sighed. "Weddings. They always make me sad. Before, it was because I always remembered my own and so I had to think of Jack. I _still_ think of him. But now it's different."  
She stopped, throwing a longing glance to the opposite corner of the room, where Deanna saw Will speaking with the Captain.  
"How is it different?", she asked, guessing what Beverly was hinting at. "You never did tell me what happened on Kesprytt... Or afterwards."  
"I never told you", Beverly answered, "because it's not my story to tell. What happened is difficult to explain and remains between Jean-Luc and me."  
Deanna nodded. "I understand." She knew that there was more, and that Beverly was just about to come out with it.

"I made a mistake." The words came slowly, hesitantly. It seemed to Deanna that this was the first time her friend confessed this, even to herself. "I was scared, scared of my feelings and what they might mean. Scared of the future and scared of the past. So I made a decision and in turn, I think I destroyed the last chance of happiness I still had."

"Oh Beverly", Deanna hugged her friend and for a moment or two, she just held her. Even though the doctor's account had been vague, she could still piece together, what kind of scene must have played out after their rescue from the planet. She had wondered about the unusual strong sense of longing she had felt from both, the Captain and the CMO, after their experience. Now it all made sense. Apparently, they now knew about each other's feelings for each other, something Deanna had known from the very beginning.

"I say this to you not as a counselor, but as your friend: if you knew what I know, you would not think this was 'your last chance of happiness'. You made a decision, and now you regret it. Well, unmake it! You don't have to go back in time, you just have to", she gave an emphatic nod in the direction of Picard, "go forward."

Beverly still looked unsure and she was nervously tracing the edge of her now empty glass. "What do you mean: 'if you knew, what I know'?"

Deanna couldn't help but smirk. "Oh Beverly, isn't it obvious?! I try to stay out of people's feelings when I'm not on duty, but with you two, it was hard to miss. I've always known how you felt about each other."

"Why did you never say anything?"

"Well", Deanna smiled at her friend, "it wasn't my story to tell."

Beverly couldn't help but laugh and a warm feeling was washing over the empath. While there was still a little doubt inside her friend, she felt more confident than before. Deanna felt the gratitude and love of the woman in front of her.

"Now go to him", she encouraged her. And teasing, she added: "Give him a piece of the 'Dancing Doctor'!"

Beverly cringed when she heard that nickname and playfully smacked her friend's arm. Her whole face had lit up and she seemed a lot more carefree. Yet for a moment her eyes became serious again and in all earnesty, she turned towards the woman who had probably saved her from a well of self-loathing and self-pity.

"Thank you, Deanna! I don't know, what I'd do without you."

Deanna gave Beverly another reassuring smile and with a hopeful sigh, the red haired woman made her way through the dancing and laughing crew members of the Enterprise, on her way to its Captain.  
Deanna could feel the hope and longing coming from Beverly, the same she'd felt in the Captain these past weeks.

She didn't know exactly, what was happening. She was neither fortune teller nor prophet, she didn't see things, she only felt them. And a short while after Beverly had left on her mission to take back the happiness she deserved, Deanna felt something. Maybe it was a kiss, maybe a daring confession of love, maybe something else entirely; all Deanna knew was, that it was good. That two people, who had been filled with unrequited love and immense longing longed no more. With a content smile, she made her way back to the buffet, where Will Riker had been trying to get a drink for the last 10 minutes. She felt it was only dutiful to release him from his torment.

"Come on", she whispered in his ear, trying to sound as seductive as possible, "dance with me, Will!"


End file.
